The last few months and more earnestly lately I have spent several
hours a day looking for a home for my family. This right now is primarily an on
line process as we are on the road staying with friends and family. I spend
from 2 to 4 hours a day looking at possibilities.... details of number of rooms,
bathrooms, schools in the area etc.. Is this apartment in our budget? What is
our budget? Will there be space for us to serve others in our new ministry? Will
Dave have a space for his office? Will we be close to public transport so Ethan
can get to his school? Will there be enough windows to let the sun light in so
we can survive the long Chicago winters?
As I look, I find my mind wandering.... wondering what will our
new lives look like in Chicago? As I have narrowed down a few places for Dave
to look at in person, (Am I crazy to let my husband pick out our
apartment/house? The younger 2 children and myself will stay with my sister as
Dave and Ethan go into Chicago to finalize a place for us and than we will join
him. ) I am reminded of all the houses that we have called home over the years.
Our first home was a cute 2-bedroom apartment over a garage in
Abilene, TX while we were finishing up school. Good memories beginning our nest
together.
Our second home was a church parsonage in our first ministry job
in Minnesota. We were so excited when the church leaders opened the door and we
saw our house for the first time. A very large (after living in a small garage
apartment anything would have felt large) 2 bedroom with a finish
basement...what a bonus! I loved my large picture window in the living room. We
were pregnant with our first child so I was eager to make one of the rooms into
a nursery. I had so much fun turning this house into a home.
Our 3rd home was in Uganda and it was a very large 6-bedroom home
by lake Victoria. The house had been empty for a while and had been vandalized
and needed a lot of TLC. We were able to rent it at a low cost and proceed to
fix it up over the next few years. Our first year we hosted over hundred
visitors so it was such a blessing we had all those rooms. I had fun redoing floors,
painting and stenciling...hours and hours of work. The house transformed into a
beautiful home. The landlord noticed and with pressure from her extended
family she more than doubled our rent. We departed bitter- sweet from this home
because of all the money and time we had invested.
Our 4th home was on top of a very large hill with a
less than desirable road. The home was a newer construction with 3 small rooms
and a garage that I transformed into a bedroom and school room. I loved our
porch on this home with its beautiful views. Dave built a playground for the
kids (4 kids during this time) …so many great memories in this home! But as
time passed we began to out grow this small home. Our landlord had built a much
larger 2-story house next door that had sat empty for a long time and he
graciously lowered the rent so we could live there.
That became our 5th home. Oh what space we had now. We
enlarged our one-room school and several others in the community joined. This
house was similar to our first home in Uganda but a bit smaller with only 5 bedrooms.
So many good times with lots of visitors and parties in this home. When Timothy
was a baby there was a small attic fire and everyone was down stairs and did
not know but he cried and ended up saving us all with his warning. Dave and
Mark one of our co-workers put the fire out! Our home was saved!
Our 6th home in Africa was in Rwanda. We rented a
furnished place when we first moved, as our shipment with all of our stuff in
Uganda would take a while to come. We were so thankful to find a 3-room duplex
that was fully furnished. It was a tight squeeze but we were ready to get out
of the hotel. A few weeks after we first arrived in Rwanda 14 Oklahoma
Christian students joined us for the summer. It was fun learning about Rwanda
together. This house although temporary ended up being in the neighborhood
where the church and school that God allowed us to help start was in. At that time the neighborhood was new and
water was a bit of a problem and after 2 months of no water we decided to move
our next house even though our furniture had not yet come.
Our 7th house, I new would be our home seconds after I
drove down into the tree-covered driveway. It reminded me of the old colonial
homes of my Kenya youth. The house was a simple bungalow style with a breath taking
beautiful yard.
I must admit out of all of our homes this is my favorite. It
had unique flooring in the living and dinning area. It also had a fireplace.
After converting the garage into a bedroom (one of my trademarks) we had 6
bedrooms. We had a large parch with ½ of
it screened in. This was one of my favorite spots to spend time with God. We
hosted many guest and had lots of parties! I think one of my favorites was my
surprise 40th birthday! It
was a sad day when we had to leave that house as the landlord needed to replace
the roof and do some other upgrades that would place the house into a more expensive
rental than we could afford. We had almost 6 wonderful years in that home in
Kimihurura.
 |
| View from my porch in our Kimihurura home |
Our last year in Rwanda we found a house that both Dave and I
could agree on and was in our budget. After extensive renovations during the
first few months. I grew to really enjoy this home. My porch grew on me
especially after a few parties. ( I am of the opinion that a good party helps
to turn a house into a home).
 |
| My sister Debra, my self holding our foster baby Gabe, and our son Caleb with one of our dogs Shortly after we moved in we answered the call to move to the U.S so we were only in this home for a year. In hindsight I am glad that God pried me out of my Kimihurura home a year earlier because he new I needed to grief one loss at a time. Leaving this new home was not as difficult. |
Over our 19 years in Africa we had several extend furloughs and
lived with family and friends and house sat and stayed in Visiting Missionary
houses. We have always been blessed in these seasons. My kids have developed a
quick adjustment to a new place becoming home. I hope this is a skill that will
serve them well in life.
This last year was our first
year back in the U.S to live for a longer season. God blessed us by opening a
door for us to stay in Missionary Furlough Homes in Wheaton, IL outside of
Chicago. These are fully furnished homes even down to the linen and kitchen utensils.
It was a great landing spot for us. We had hoped to stay there for another year
or 2 but that was not the plan. We are now transitioning again. We are moving
into the city of Chicago as missionaries and hoping to partner with East
African Diaspora to plant a multi-cultural church.
First task is to set up home base. Thanks for indulging me as I
have walked down memory lane. It is building to my faith to record all the
houses that God has turned into homes for my family. Not only much needed
shelter from the storms of life but also where joy has flowed out to our family
and community.
I am encouraged not to get
bogged down in the details but trust that God has this! I am praying and would ask
for prayers that He will provide the place that can be our next home not only
for our family but a place that we can serve out of.
